This is one of those enduring books: the kind I read in elementary school, in my early teens, and again in my late teens (and hopefully well into my adult life). And loved it every time.

The story manages to be interesting without much action or conflict. My favorite part of the story is the garden itself and Mary and Dickon's interactions there.

Recommended for readers of all ages. Content: scary scenes, mention of "Magic" (in reference to how roses grow), family strife, a cruel father. The opening sequence of the book is fairly traumatic, as a young girl loses her family and is alone in a house with a snake.

"Sometimes since I've been in the garden I've looked up through the trees at the sky and I have had a strange feeling of being happy as if something was pushing and drawing in my chest and making me breathe fast. Magic is always pushing and drawing and making things out of nothing. Everything is made out of magic, leaves and trees, flowers and birds, badgers and foxes and squirrels and people. So it must be all around us. In this garden - in all the places.

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reread 2/14/2018